South Dakota insurers remain ahead of victims

SOUTH DAKOTA LEGISLATURE

Senate refuses to debate bill dealing with order of compensation

March 09, 2011|BY BOB MERCER | American News Correspondent

PIERRE — Insurance company lobbyists earned their keep Tuesday, as the state Senate refused to debate legislation that would have reversed South Dakota’s current law and put victims ahead of insurers in being compensated on account of bodily injury, death or property damages.

Senators voted 24-11 against the placing the measure, House Bill 1184, on the chamber’s calendar for consideration. That killed the legislation, which had previously been approved by the House of Representatives 40-26 on Valentine’s Day.

The bill’s supporters knew they faced difficulty in the Senate, especially with the election defeat in November of its champion from a year ago, then-Sen. Nancy Turbak, D-Watertown.

That proved true as the Senate Judiciary Committee deadlocked 3-3 and subsequently declared the bill to be “without recommendation,” meaning the decision whether to debate it rested with the full Senate.

Sen. Joni Cutler, R-Sioux Falls, said Tuesday it is essentially the same bill as the 2010 version, which was approved by the Legislature but vetoed by then-Gov. Mike Rounds. She said she needed “a few more Davids” to get the bill on the debate calendar so that she could offer a compromise amendment.

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But the committee chairman said the bill received a fair hearing and didn’t need to be debated.

“This is a very complicated and very emotional subject where we have to come down on one side or the other eventually,” Sen. Craig Tieszen, R-Rapid City, said.

He added that Cutler’s compromise was not agreed upon by all parties.

Sen. Larry Rhoden, R-Union Center, said the legislation was worthy of discussion.

“I have waffled and waned on this subject or several years,” he said.

Sen. Angie Buhl, D-Sioux Falls, said Cutler’s proposed amendment was a good-faith attempt to resolve the problems raised by Rounds in his veto message last year.